This one is personal. I sit down with Tony Rico, my private batting coach from eighth grade through my senior year of high school, for a walk down memory lane that turned into something much bigger than softball.

Back in 1995, my mom drove me from Irvine to a backyard batting cage in Huntington Beach once a week. I thought I was there to fix my swing.

What I got was five years of mentorship with a softball and a bat, and life lessons I didn't recognize until decades later: you don't have to end on a good one, keep your shoulders back when you swing and miss, breathe, slow down, and make the adjustment.

Today, Tony is the President of Firecracker Softball, Inc., a program that has grown to 28 states, with a culture built on dignity, humility, and playing with honor. He's also the Co-Founder of The Range, a pitching academy in Anaheim, California.

We talk about how he coaches without ever telling a player what she's doing wrong, why the car ride home matters more than the game, what his parents taught him about love and safety, and how the same simple ingredients that worked in the cage still work in parenting, corporate life, and a cross-country move.

In this episode, we cover:
-How a referral from a teammate led me to Tony's backyard cage in Huntington Beach in 1995
-"You don't have to end on a good one": valuing yourself even after a swing and a miss
-Posture, presence, and the power of one word, and why Tony never told a player what she was doing wrong
-Asking questions instead of giving corrections: "Where did the last one go? Where's the next one going?"
-Why softball is the wrong game to play if you want constant emotional satisfaction, and what that teaches you about ego
-The long car ride home, and why girls have to feel good to play good
-Creating an experience that calms a player's nervous system, and the "hard, resilient love" behind it
-Firecracker Softball's journey from Gary Wardine's original program to a nationwide organization, and Melinda, the mom who walked in, saw Tony's schedule, and changed everything
-Tony's parents: a World War II Veteran father, a mother whose last words were "be good to each other," and what they taught him about safety and joy
-Parenting through adversity without losing your most beautiful self, and the importance of the repair
-Our shared inside joke, "maximum bat speed," and why the half swing still holds up
-The Natasha Watley story, the Alliance, and where women's softball is headed with NIL money and the pro league
-My family's move from California to Knoxville and the self-reflection that comes with a fresh start
-Why "Play with Honor" is about remembering the people who got you here

Whether or not you have a kid in sports, this conversation is about the people who shape us before we know we're being shaped, and about carrying yourself with dignity no matter how the at-bat goes.

Follow The Range on Instagram

Follow Firecracker Softball on Instagram

Sponsored by DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha tea. ⁠Visit LiveDivini ⁠and use code Breanne10 at checkout for a discount!

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#softball #firecrackersoftball #youthsports #coaching #mentorship #lifelessons #parenting #adversity #traumatotestimony #resilience #mentalhealth #girlsinsports

For our 100th episode, I sit down with Paul Fisher, and Chris Klimis, CEO and COO of Radiant Mobile, the world's first Christian mobile carrier.

Radiant Mobile is partnered with Compax and integrated into the T-Mobile network, bringing faith-focused mobile service together with world-class 5G connectivity.

Learn more about Radiant Mobile

Download the Radiant Mobile app

Follow Radiant Mobile on Instagram

Both Paul and Chris open up about the personal reckonings that led them here.

Paul talks about his 30 years in the fashion and beauty industry, describing it as the "belly of the beast." In the 1980s and early 1990s, when supermodels ruled fashion, Paul Fisher was one of the industry's most talked-about agents.

Over the course of his career, Fisher worked with some of the most recognizable names in modeling, including Naomi Campbell, Stephanie Seymour, Carol Alt, Carla Bruni, Brooke Burke, Kimora Lee Simmons, and Carré Otis.Paul describes the moment he decided he was done being "part of the problem".

Chris shares his journey from worship pastor to co-founder, walking away from his own career after one conversation with Paul.

Paul and Chris talk candidly about the technology they built to block harmful content at the network level before it ever reaches a phone, the criticism they've faced for it, and why they believe protecting kids online is a spiritual issue as much as a technical one.

In this episode, we cover:

-How Radiant Mobile blocks content at the carrier level instead of the device level, so kids can't work around it

-The 9 hard blocks (pornography, hate speech, antisemitism, racism, and more) built in for every subscriber, plus 120 categories parents can customize

-Paul's 30 years representing supermodels and hosting his own TV show, and the moment he walked away from it-Chris's path from worship pastor to co-founder, and the conversation with Paul that changed his life in two days

-Hearing the "still small voice" of God, and how both men describe being led into this mission

-Why they built exclusive Christian content, including original stories using licensed characters like Tinkerbell, Rapunzel, and Snow White, restored to a wholesome, faith-centered focus

-The upcoming home router device that extends protection to every device in the house-Geofencing, screen time control, and other parental control tools built into the platform

-Responding to criticism from groups that see their mission as exclusionary

-Why they see this as a ministry and a movement, not just a business

-How to switch carriers (keep your number, no added cost) and get started today

This episode of Adventures in Adversity is a special one, marking 100 episodes of turning trauma into triumph and ultimately into testimony.

All glory be to Jesus Christ!

⁠Paul's LinkedIn⁠

⁠Paul's Instagram⁠

⁠Chris' LinkedIn⁠

⁠Chris' Instagram⁠

Sponsored by DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha tea. Visit LiveDivini and use code Breanne10 at checkout for a discount!

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#faith #christianpodcast #parentalcontrol #onlinesafety #fatherhood #adversity #traumatotestimony #100thepisode #mentalhealth #resilience

I sit down with Joseph Pennell, a military veteran, cyber intelligence analyst, sobriety coach, and content creator, for an honest, analytical conversation about grief, addiction, failure, emotional avoidance, and rebuilding your identity from the ground up.

Joseph opens up about losing his brother Billy in high school and how he unknowingly postponed his grief for years. We talk about the role alcohol eventually played in his life, first as a way to shut off anxiety and later as a way to access emotions he didn’t know how to process any other way.

Joseph shares what happened when his drinking spiraled after his divorce, what it actually felt like to get sober, and why sobriety wasn’t the finish line he expected. For him, it was the beginning of learning how to truly understand himself.

We talk about relapse, shame, vulnerability, masculinity, emotional suppression, losing friends after getting sober, and the uncomfortable work of rebuilding a life without alcohol.

Joseph also shares his analytical approach to recovery: understanding your triggers, your emotions, and the different “parts” of yourself well enough that fewer things catch you off guard.

In this episode, we cover:

• Growing up as a quiet, internal kid in a home shaped by his father’s addiction
• Losing his brother in high school and postponing his grief for years
• How alcohol became both an escape from anxiety and a gateway to buried emotions
• The “parts” of ourselves that step forward to protect us—even through self-destructive behavior
• Why Joseph chose to feel his anxiety in rehab rather than immediately medicate it
• Intentionally confronting triggers early in sobriety instead of simply avoiding them
• Why relapse doesn’t have to mean failure—and how to break the shame cycle
• The emotional flood that can come after the initial “sober high” wears off
• Why recovery requires real tools, not just willpower
• Losing friendships after getting sober and learning to be okay with it
• Men, vulnerability, and why toughness can sometimes be suppression in disguise
• Rebuilding your identity after addiction
• Why deeply understanding yourself can become one of your greatest tools in recovery

Read more about Joseph’s story in the US Times

If you're struggling with alcohol, you don't have to suffer in silence. Explore these FREE recovery resources

Connect with Joseph:
Instagram: @th3next24
TikTok: @th3next24
LinkedIn: Joseph Pennell

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Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn

This episode is sponsored by DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha tea. Visit LiveDivini.com and use code BREANNE10 at checkout for a discount.

I sit down with my fantastic friend Ervin Anderson, a husband, father of 2, high school math teacher, and ⁠Diablo Valley City College basketball coach⁠. We have a real conversation about what it was like growing up on the DC/Maryland border during the crack epidemic and the anger Erv carried as a teenager.

He shares how faith, basketball, and his parents' discipline turned that anger into fuel instead of fear.

Erv opens up about what it was like living on the edge of DC, where kids stayed in the yard instead of the neighborhood. He remembers the metal detector at school feeling like safety instead of fear, and recalls how the game of basketball became both an escape and the reason his grades turned around.

He talks candidly about the anger he carried as a black teenager who felt like a target everywhere he went. Erv shares how he learned to place that anger instead of burying it, and how his understanding of God shifted from fear of hell to a genuine, steady faith. Erv now leans on this faith to make decisions in his life.

In this conversation, we talk about:
-Growing up on the DC/Maryland border during the crack epidemic, and what his parents did to keep him safe
-How basketball and construction work with his dad turned into real-world lessons in math and discipline
-The anger he carried as a teenager, where it came from, and how he learned to "place it" instead of letting it control him
-His dad's line that changed everything: "you don't complain unless you plan on fixing it"
-The bull vs. cow analogy for facing a storm head-on instead of running from it
-Why "I've been here before" and looking to Jesus's life as a template for adversity changed how he copes with hard moments
-How he moved from fearing God to trusting God, and what that shift unlocked in his marriage and parenting
-His advice for anyone who wants to know God but doesn't know where to start: "just move"

Connect with Erv on Instagram

Meet Erv's incredible wife, Kendal Anderson, author of the children's book "Different," in ep. 76

Grab Kendal's book, "Different"

This episode of Adventures in Adversity is sponsored by DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha tea. Visit LiveDivini and use discount code Breanne10 at checkout for a discount!

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#AdventuresInAdversity #Faith #TraumaToTestimony #BlackMaleTeacher #BasketballCoach #MentalHealth #Resilience #ChristianPodcast #DCUpbringing

I sit down with Prophet Samia Young, attorney, author, and founder of Samia Young Ministries, for one of the most raw and powerful testimonies this show has ever featured.

Samia grew up in a domestic violence household and, by age seven, was already carrying her own birth certificate and Social Security card because she knew she'd have to raise herself.

At 13, she was sent to live with an aunt in Chicago, where she endured three and a half years of starvation and abuse so severe it temporarily took away her ability to speak.

At 14, in that same house, she gave her life to Christ, and at 15, a pastor she'd never met called her out from the back row and told her she was a prophet.

Years of running followed: promiscuity, addiction, and jail on her 24th birthday, until a night at rock bottom holding a bottle of pills when she heard God say the words that saved her life.

Today she's an attorney, a minister who preaches in women's prisons in Ohio, and the author of a memoir that's now becoming a stage play.

In this conversation, we talk about:
-How a domestic violence childhood shaped Samia's early "supernatural knowing" and sense of calling
-The three and a half years she spent starved and abused by her aunt in Chicago, and how trauma took away her ability to speak
-Giving her life to Christ at 14 inside the very house where she felt invisible and unsafe
-Being called out as a prophet at 15, and why knowing your calling isn't enough to keep you from running from it
-Jail on her 24th birthday and the exact words she heard from God the night she considered ending her life
-The difference between coming out of the grave and actually being loosed from your grave clothes
-Why God is after our dependency, not our perfection
-Her new stage play, "Loose Her" debuting in the Cleveland, Ohio area this September

Samia, Come Forth! Trading Graveclothes for Purpose (book)

Samia's website and shop

Follow Samia Young on Instagram

Subscribe to Samia Young Ministries on YouTube

This episode of Adventures in Adversity is sponsored by DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha tea. Visit LiveDivini and use discount code Breanne10 at checkout for a discount!

#ComeForth #Loosed #ChristianTestimony #FaithOverFear #TraumaToTriumph #ProphetSamiaYoung #AdventuresInAdversity

I'm incredibly grateful to sit down with ⁠Mark Thomas Beare⁠, a survivor of narcissistic abuse who turned his multi-year search for understanding into ground-breaking psychological work.

Mark begins ep. 96 by candidly sharing where it all began.

After experiencing his own total psychological collapse in 2019, Mark spent years mapping his unraveling into a full theory, now known as (MPIT), built on the work of Professor Sam Vaknin, who wrote the forward to Mark's new book:

Narcissistic Redeemer: Bringing You Back from Collapse

Through thousands of hours of deep self-reflection and in-depth psychological research, Mark developed the Mirrored Psychic Inversion Theory (MPIT) and Anticipatory Stress Reflex (ASR) theories of narcissistic abuse, two critical frameworks that are changing the way survivors and clinicians approach recovery.

This is one of the most detailed conversations this show has ever had about what actually happens inside the mind of survivors of narcissistic abuse. We talk about why the chaos, dissociation, and identity loss that follow a discard are not a sign that you're broken.

It's a sign that you can feel pain...and you can recover. If you've ever wondered whether you were losing your mind after a relationship ended, this conversation offers language, structure, and real hope for finding your way back.

In this episode, we cover:

-The shared fantasy, the dual mothership, and the cathexis cycle (idealization, devaluation, discard)

-Why survivors co-idealize a partner too, and how that creates a collapse that gets deferred until after the relationship ends

-The liminal phase, collapse-induced psychotic regression, orbital collapse, and the deadness phase that follow a discard

-The five self-states inside collapse: the Redeemer, the Mute Child, the False Protector, the Introject Enforcer, and the Truth Self

-The ASR Complex (Anticipatory Stress Reflex) and why reality feels like it's slipping away during collapse

-Building an "observer ego" and learning to decathect from the internal loop

-Why the capacity to feel this much pain is proof you can heal, not proof something is wrong with you

You're not going insane. You're not alone. You were abused by a narcissist whose primary goal was to, as Mark puts it, "colonize your mind."

You did not imagine it. You're not being too sensitive. And you CAN rebuild yourself after collapsing under the weight of the darkness of narcissistic abuse.

As Mark brilliantly says in this interview: your breakdown - that reaction that rocked your inner psyche - from a clinical psychology perspective, is a normal reaction to a very abnormal situation with your abuser.

In this episode, Mark walks us through each phase of the survivor's collapse in detail so you can understand exactly what happened when the narcissist infiltrated your mind and began conditioning you through abuse.

Read Mark's books to help you recondition your psyche to heal and step back into your true self...the self you swore you knew and lived in before the narcissist.

The Organising Gate and the Reconstruction of Reality After Narcissistic Abuse

Follow Mark Thomas Beare on Instagram

This episode of Adventures in Adversity is sponsored by DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha tea. Visit LiveDivini and use discount code Breanne10 at checkout.

#narcissisticabuse #narcissisticabuserecovery #MPIT #mentalhealth #trauma #healing #selflove #discard #cptsd #resilience

I sit down with Valeriya Hjertenæs, PhD researcher, international speaker, and Mrs. World Congeniality.

Valeriya's story starts in an unexpected place: a mental institution in Ukraine, in her pajamas, just weeks after adopting her daughter.

She opens up about the moment her first intrusive thought hit, a terrifying image that felt completely opposite of who she was, and how not understanding what was happening led her down a dark path toward a suicide plan.

Her mother's quiet intuition, noticing Valeriya packing winter clothes in the middle of summer, became the turning point that saved her life.

Topics we cover:

• What intrusive thoughts actually are, and why they're not a reflection of your character
• Valeriya's path from crisis to diagnosis, and the doctor who told her "you are not crazy"
• Living with OCD as a mother, a PhD researcher, and a public figure
• The global scale of neurodivergence, and why so many people never get diagnosed
• Why men in some cultures are more likely to die by suicide than admit they're struggling
• How Valeriya turned her lowest moment into a mission of advocacy and hope

If you've ever had a thought that scared you, one that felt nothing like the person you know yourself to be, this episode is for you. My hope is that you walk away feeling less alone, and reminded that your hardest chapter can still become someone else's hope.

OCD resources for listeners - you're not alone!

If this episode brought up something for you, here are trusted places to learn more or find support:

International OCD Foundation (iocdf.org) — educational resources, treatment guides, and a directory to find OCD-specialized therapists

Your Anxiety Toolkit — a podcast dedicated to providing mindfulness-based tools for anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), depression, and the mental struggles that go along with these disorders. 

NOCD (treatmyocd.com) — accessible articles and virtual therapy options focused specifically on OCD

BeyondOCD.org — plain-language explanations of intrusive thoughts and OCD subtypes, including the "harm OCD" experience Valeriya describes

IntrusiveThoughts.org — resources specifically focused on understanding and coping with intrusive thoughts

Maternal OCD — support specifically for parents experiencing postpartum or new-parent OCD, which mirrors much of Valeriya's story

For anyone in crisis, please reach out to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (call or text 988 in the US) or your local emergency services. You are not alone, and help is available.

This episode of Adventures in Adversity is sponsored by DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha tea.

Visit LiveDivini & use discount code Breanne10 at checkout!

Follow Adventures in Adversity on Instagram & Facebook

#MentalHealth #OCD #IntrusiveThoughts #Neurodiversity #Motherhood

Jeremy Lipkowitz, Founder of Unhooked Academy + Unhooked Podcast, opens up about his personal journey with porn addiction, the crushing weight of shame, and how it impacted men's mental health.

Jeremy breaks down:

• How porn addiction quietly erodes intimacy, contentment, and self-trust

• The deep shame that keeps men silent and stuck

• The inner work of recovery and what actually helps men break free

• Science-based, compassionate strategies for healing

• Why speaking publicly about addiction changed everything for him

This conversation is for anyone struggling with compulsive behaviors, men wanting to show up better in their relationships, or anyone ready to end the cycle of shame and start healing.

About Jeremy Lipkowitz:
Jeremy is a leading voice in destigmatizing porn addiction and educating the public on effective, science-based recovery strategies. He's the founder of Unhooked Academy and host of the Unhooked Podcast, where he addresses porn addiction recovery with both candor and compassion.

Connect with Jeremy:

• Website: jeremylipkowitz.com

• Unhooked Academy: unhooked.academy

• Podcast: Unhooked: Breaking Porn Addiction Podcast

Episode Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
02:15 - Jeremy's personal story with porn addiction
08:30 - The shame that kept it hidden
15:45 - How porn hijacks the brain
22:10 - Men's mental health and isolation
28:30 - The recovery process that works
35:00 - Practical tools for breaking free
42:15 - Closing thoughts

Key topics: porn addiction, men's mental health, shame, recovery, mindfulness, intimacy, integrity

Subscribe to this podcast for more conversations on addiction recovery and men's mental health.

Nearly 80% of suicide deaths in the U.S. are men...and yet, men’s mental health is one of the least talked-about crises of our time.

In this episode, we break down:

• Why men are more likely to suffer in silence
• How societal expectations around masculinity shape emotional behavior
• Why so many men avoid therapy and emotional expression
• The real impact of “be strong” culture
• How to redefine masculinity and emotional strength
• Practical ways to support a man who is struggling
• How to raise emotionally healthy boys

This conversation explores the real reasons behind the stigma around men’s mental health...and what needs to change. You’ll also learn why vulnerability is not weakness, but a critical form of strength.

This episode is sponsored by DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha. Use code BREANNE10 at checkout for a discount.

Key topics covered:

• Male suicide rates and mental health statistics
• The help-seeking gap for men
• Cultural expectations of masculinity
• Emotional expression in history and culture
• Teaching emotional skills early
• Building resilience through emotional awareness
• Removing shame from vulnerability

Need support? You're not alone!

BetterHelp

TalkSpace

American Addiction Centers

Mental Health America

Christian therapists

The Kevin Love Fund

Jordan Peterson on dealing with depression

If this episode helped you or someone you know, please share it. Follow this podcast for more conversations on mental health, growth, and leadership.

#MensMentalHealth #MaleSuicide #MentalHealthMatters #MasculinityAndMentalHealth #EmotionalVulnerability #MentalHealthAwareness #MenWhoCry #EndTheStigma

I sit down with Mason and Cameron, the co-founders of DIVINI, to talk about how a homebrew kombucha recipe turned into a growing wellness brand built around gut health, intentional ingredients, and real-life resilience.

Follow DIVINI on Instagram

Their story is a reminder that big things often start with one idea, one sip, and a willingness to keep going.

We talk about the adversity behind building a company, the health struggles that inspired the product, and how both of them turned personal challenges into something meaningful.

Mason shares how gut issues, acne, and a deeper focus on internal health shaped his approach, while Cameron opens up about his own transformation and how the brand became part of his journey, too.

Topics we cover:

-The story behind Divini and how the name came to be

-What adversity looks like when you’re building a business from the ground up

-Mason’s gut health and skin journey

-Cameron’s health transformation and how it shaped the brand

-Why kombucha became the base for Divini

-The ingredients, flavors, and functional benefits behind the drink

-Brand design, scaling, and getting into retail

If you’ve ever thought about starting something of your own or making changes in your health, this episode is a reminder that progress doesn’t have to be perfect...it just has to be intentional

This episode is sponsored by ⁠DIVINI, a honey-based sparkling kombucha tea.⁠

Use code Breanne10 for a discount at checkout.

Follow the podcast on⁠ Instagram⁠ and⁠ Facebook⁠

#DIVINI #HoneyKombucha #KombuchaTea #GutHealth